The best leadership books of 2011

Leadership experts from Warren Bennis to Tom Peters share their picks of the best leadership books to hit shelves this year.

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"Great By Choice" by Jim Collins and Morten T. Hansen

Michael Useem, director of the Center for Leadership and Change Management at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, picked Jim Collins and Morten T. Hansen's "Great By Choice" as the best leadership book of 2011.

Courtesy of Fortier Public Relations /

"Steve Jobs" by Walter Isaacson

Several leadership experts, including Harvard professor Bill George and Fast Company magazine co-founder Alan Webber, shared with us that "Steve Jobs," the biography of the iconic Apple CEO, topped their list for the best leadership book to hit shelves this year.

Albert Watson / Simon & Schuster

"Little Bets" by Peter Sims

Tom Fox, vice president for leadership and innovation at the Partnership for Public Service and the author of The Washington Post's Federal Coach blog, says his 2011 favorite was "Little Bets" by Peter Sims. "It provides a critical perspective for leaders facing constraints -- those who achieve breakthrough innovations/success start with small experiments that lead to their results. They don’t bet the farm from the outset."

Courtesy of Simon and Schuster

"The Decision to Trust" by Robert Hurley

Barry Posner, co-author of "The Leadership Challenge," chooses as one of the best leadership reads this year Robert Hurley's "The Decision to Trust," which explores the decades-long decline of trust in our institutions, and what managers can do the bridge this trust divide.

Courtesy of Fortier Public Relations

"The Progress Principle" by Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer

Leadership expert Barry Posner highly recommends Teresa Amabile's and Steven Kramer's "The Progress Principle" as one of the year's best. The book focuses on how to enhance the inner work lives of employees -- that is, what drives them and inspires them to be more creative and productive.

Courtesy of Planned TV Arts

"Take the Lead" by Betsy Myers

Leadership guru and "In Search of Excellence" author Tom Peters picks "Take the Lead" as his 2011 favorite. Its author, Betsy Myers, was a senior Clinton administration employee who also served as the chief operating officer of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign and as director of Harvard Kennedy School's Center for Public Leadership. "For me, the defining difference in this superb book is Ms. Myers' insistence that every day provides leadership opportunities for every one of us -- from the most junior employee to the top of the organization."

Courtesy of Myers Leadership

"The Leader's Checklist" by Michael Useem

Leadership expert Warren Bennis was among the several who said "The Leader's Checklist" by Michael Useem deserves to be recognized as this year's best book on leadership.

Courtesy of Wharton Digital Press

"Credibility" by James Kouzes and Barry Posner

Professor Col. Charles Allen of the U.S. Army War College selects "Credibility" as the best leadership book of 2011. The book, a fully revised version of one they published nearly 20 years ago, revisits how leaders build influence and trust in today's business environment.

Courtesy of Red Pencil PR

Featured Photo Galleries

Paula and Clay Gustin become emotional as dozens of balloons float above during a memorial Wednesday, May 23, 2012, for their five-year-old son, Rhett, who died in an accident on May 20. (AP Photo/The Coeur D?Alene Press, Shawn Gust) MANDATORY CREDIT

Fleet Week, solar impulse plane, artificial heart, Air Force academy graduation and more in the day in photos

Fleet Week, solar impulse plane, artificial heart, Air Force academy graduation and more.

Red Panda Bears sleep in the Panda Bear enclosure at the Beijing Zoo on May 22, 2012. The zoo grounds were originally a Ming Dynasty imperial palace and finally opened to the public in 1908. The zoo's history states that during the WWII, most of the zoo's animals died of starvation with only 13 monkeys and one old emu surviving the war. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTONMARK RALSTON/AFP/GettyImages

Barn owls, pit bulls, red pandas, cheetah cubs and more in animal views

Barn owls, pit bulls, red pandas, cheetah cubs and more.

CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 24: Actress Macy Gray attend the 'The Paperboy' photocall during the 65th Annual Cannes Film Festival at Palais des Festivals on May 24, 2012 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Eye on entertainment

Macy Gray, Zac Efron, Philip Phillips, Fantasia Barrino, Neil Diamond and other celebrities.

‘Dancing with the Stars’

Season 14 of “Dancing With the Stars.”

May 21, 2012: Members of the Naval Academy freshman class (plebes) lock arms and form a human ladder while climbing the Herndon Monument at the United States Naval Academy on May 21, 2012 in Annapolis, Md. Each year members of the Naval Academy's freshman class (plebes) climb the lard covered 21-foot tall Herndon Monument to replace a plebe dixie cup hat with a midshipman's hat at the top of the obelisk.

Teamwork, discipline help plebes get to the top

At the U.S. Naval Academy, the freshman class attempts to climb the Herndon Monument.

The National Zoo has two new additions: the female cheetah cub, left, and her brother on the right.

The National Zoo’s new cheetah cubs

A dramatic rescue saved these two cheetah babies and their distressed mother giving birth.

JOPLIN, MO - MAY 19: Grace Goebel plays outside of the new Habitat for Humanity home of her parents that was built on the spot of a home that had been destroyed after a tornado hit the neighborhood almost one year ago on May 19, 2012 in Joplin, Missouri. Tuesday will mark the one-year anniversary of the EF-5 tornado that devastated the town. The tornado left behind a path of destruction along with 161 deaths and hundreds of injuries, but one year later there are signs that the town is beginning to recover. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Joplin, Missouri, one year after tornadoes devastate town

Reminders of destruction are everywhere in Joplin, Mo., a year after a killer tornado.

COLLEGE PARK, MD - APRIL 4: Pet acupuncturist Greta McVey puts needles in mixed breed 'Cashew' at her home office in College Park, MD on April 4, 2012. Cashew was rescued by his owner this past December and suffers from anxiety and fear of abandonment. McVey first licensed as an acupuncturist on humans then went on to be certified on animals. She hosts a variety of clientele, anything from birds, to guinea pigs but mainly treats dogs and cats. (Photo by Linda Davidson/The Washington Post)

Washington’s ‘pet-u-puncture whisperer’

College Park’s Greta McVey is part of the growing industry focused on veterinary acupuncture.

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